He just stared at his coffee cup, his jaw tight.

“You have a good brain, Derek,” I said. “But you have to decide whose life you are living.”

He looked up at me, his eyes searching my face.

“Did she really try to stop you from starting Solar Reach?” he asked.

“She threatened to sue me for using the family name in my press releases,” I said.

Derek’s mouth parted slightly. “She didn’t.”

“She did,” I said. “She called my investors and told them I was unstable.”

“How did you survive that?” he asked.

“I worked eighteen hours a day,” I said. “I lived on instant noodles. And I didn’t care what she said about me.”

Derek sat in silence for a long time.

A barista behind the counter started steam-cleaning the espresso machine, the loud hiss filling the small shop.

“I don’t think I’m as strong as you,” he said.

“You don’t know how strong you are until you have no other choice,” I said.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out his keys, jingling them nervously.